SARASOTA, Fla. (Dec. 13, 2016) – The Patterson Foundation contributed almost $7.7 million in matching donations and prizes to the 2016 Giving Challenge – more than half of the event’s nearly $13.4 million grand total, which was recently disbursed to nonprofits throughout Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte and DeSoto counties. The match opportunity and other donor incentives galvanized nonprofits and citizen philanthropists to help make the 2016 Giving Challenge the most successful in the history of the event.

Presented by the Community Foundation of Sarasota County with giving strengthened by The Patterson Foundation, the 2016 Giving Challenge gave donors an opportunity to support 560 regional nonprofits. The Patterson Foundation’s contribution, which incentivized gifts from both new and returning donors, made its home region of southwest Florida one of the few communities in the nation to offer matching donations on this scale during a Giving Day and helped this year’s event surpass several of the 2015 Giving Challenge’s achievements:

— The nearly $13.4 million is almost double last year’s grand total
— 63,567 unique gifts – a 74 percent increase in the number of contributions
— More than 100 additional nonprofits were compelled to participate

“While our community’s impact during the 2015 Giving Challenge was nothing short of astounding, The Patterson Foundation believed organizations had the potential of building their philanthropy muscle even stronger,” said Debra Jacobs, president and CEO of The Patterson Foundation. “Donors new and returning, as well as our region’s invaluable nonprofits, stepped up monumentally and proved that anyone can be a philanthropist. This record-breaking total illustrates our region’s exceptional generosity.”

Each nonprofit that participated in the Giving Challenge is listed on The Giving Partner, an online tool designed to help donors make informed decisions by providing transparent overviews of an organization’s finances and structure. The Patterson Foundation, a longtime supporter of both the Giving Challenge and The Giving Partner, has provided more than $11.9 million to both programs since 2012.

The nearly $7.7 million gift was generated by the following incentives from The Patterson Foundation designed to encourage nonprofits to engage longtime contributors as well as cultivate new donors:

— A 2:1 match for contributions from new donors – up to $100 per donor, per organization
— A 1:1 match for contributions from returning donors – up to $100 per donor, per organization
— Prizes for nonprofits that cultivated the highest total dollars of new and returning donations

Visit GivingPartnerChallenge.org to learn more about the 2016 Giving Challenge and view a complete list of the nonprofits strengthened by the event.

About The Patterson Foundation
The Patterson Foundation strengthens the efforts of people, organizations and communities. The Foundation focuses on issues that address common aspirations and foster wide participation, along with ways organizations learn and share as they evolve. For more information, please visit www.thepattersonfoundation.org and connect with @ThePattersonFdn on Twitter.